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Global Call Centers Industry
Dec 12, 2012, 07:53 ET
NEW YORK, Dec. 12, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Reportlinker.com announces that a new market research report is available in its catalogue:Global Call Centers Industry
This report analyzes the worldwide markets for Call Centers in US$ Million. The report provides separate comprehensive analytics for the US, Canada, Japan, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, and Rest of World. Annual estimates and forecasts are provided for the period 2010 through 2018. A six-year historic analysis is also provided for these markets. The report profiles 185 companies including many key and niche players such as [24]7 Inc., Acumen Telecomunicaciones SA de CV, Alliance Data Systems, Inc., Expert Global Solutions, Inc., Aspect Software Inc., ATOS S.A., Avaya Inc., BT Communications (Ireland) Limited, Capita Customer Management Limited, Convergys Corp., Datamatics Global Services Limited, Dimension Data Group Company, Merchants Limited, Entel Call Center, EXL Service Holdings, Inc., Genpact, GTL Ltd., HCL BPO Services NI Ltd., IBM Global Process Services Pvt. Ltd., Plusoft Informatica Ltda, Quality Plus Callscan Australia Pty Ltd., Sitel, Stream Global Services Inc., Sykes Enterprises, Inc., Teleperformance SA, TRG Customer Solutions, West Corporation, and Wipro Technologies Ltd. Market data and analytics are derived from primary and secondary research. Company profiles are primarily based upon search engine sources in the public domain.
I. INTRODUCTION, METHODOLOGY & PRODUCT DEFINITIONSStudy Reliability and Reporting Limitations I-1Disclaimers I-2Data Interpretation & Reporting Level I-2Quantitative Techniques & Analytics I-3Product Definitions and Scope of Study I-3II. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
A Quick Primer II-1
Down to the Basics - An Introduction II-2
Call Centers - The Coming of Age II-2
Impact of the 2007-2009 Recession In Retrospect II-3
Recession Fuels Changes in Call Centers Business Models II-4
Recession Heightens the Focus On Investments and Tactics II-4
Impact of Europe's Debt Crisis: A Review II-5
2. GLOBAL ISSUES AND TRENDS II-6Key Issues II-6Call Centers & the Regulatory Environment II-6Cost Reduction & Efficiency Enhancements - Formulae forSurvival & Growth II-6Cost Reductions - The Road to Success II-6Efficiency Enhancements - Vital Component II-7Human Resources - Ranking Above Technology II-7General Industry Trends II-7From 'Call' Centers to 'Contact' Centers II-7Multiple Outsourced Call Centers - Order of the Day II-8From CRM to eRM - Multichannel Centers on the Rise II-8CEM Gathers Steam II-8Transformation from Cost Centers to Profit Centers II-8Rising Number of Home Agents II-9Emergence of Web 2.0 II-9Worldwide Call Center Capacity Spurt II-9Managing Multilingual Customers - CRM Comes to Aid II-10Complaints Handling - The Most Likely Outsourced Function II-10Cost Minimization Drives Call Centers to Low Wage Cities II-10SMB Sector Gathers Steam II-10Right Shoring & Blending Gains Traction in Call CenterOperations II-11Vertical Specific Offerings Gain Popularity II-11Use of Innovative IT Technologies Make The Contact Center "SMART" II-11Simplifying Complexities in Contact Center Processes: A KeyArea of Focus II-11Integration of Social Media & the Contact Center: A Key Trend II-12Call Center Applications Diversify to Include Mobile Apps II-12Table 1: World Contact Center Applications Market (2011):Percentage Breakdown of Revenues of Leading Vendors(includes corresponding Graph/Chart) II-13
Table 2: World Contact Center Applications Market (2011):
Percentage Breakdown of Revenues by Product Market (includes
corresponding Graph/Chart) II-13
Product and Technology Trends II-14
Key Technologies Driving Growth: VoIP and Open, Standards-
Based Software II-14
Transforming Call Centers Market - Need for Technological
Adaptability II-14
Evolving Database Technologies and Management Strategies II-14
The Emergence of Call Center 2.0 II-15
Innovations to Drive Profit Margins II-15
Benefits of Call Center 2.0 II-16
Technological Features of Call Center 2.0 II-16
IP Contact Centers and UC to Register Robust Growth II-16
Customer Support & Sales Force Automation Dominate Software
Applications II-17
Advent of Internet Technologies Revolutionizing Call Centers II-17
VoIP - Fast Replacing Circuit-Switched Architectures II-18
Integrated Services - Offering a Level Playing Field to
Small-and Mid-Sized Players II-18
Speech Recognition Technologies Transform Agent Training II-18
Web Sites and Call Centers - United They Thrive II-18
Multi-site Call Routing Solutions - Popular with Large Global
Firms II-19
Customer Routing Yet to Gain Significant Ground II-19
Hosted or Networked Server-based Call Centers on the Rise II-19
Virtual Hosted Call Center Market - High Potential II-20
Voice-Driven CRM and VoiceXML Enlarge Scope for Customer
Interactions II-20
Voice-Driven CRM II-20
Voice XML II-20
Help Desk and Call Center Companies Shift Solutions to
Browser-based Architecture II-21
Other Technology-Based Trends in Call Centers II-21
Cost and Budgetary Trends II-22
Telecommunication Costs Set for a Marginally Declining Trend II-22
Operational Costs and Budgets Continue to Expand II-22
Operational Services and Telecom Related Costs Corner Lion's
Share II-22
End Use Vertical Industry Trends II-22
Financial Services and Distribution - The Outsourcing Area of
Choice II-22
Banks Increasingly Perceive Call Center as a Sales and
Service Point II-23
Technology-Driven Banks Offering Service Enhancements at
Contact Centers II-23
Intelligent Call Routing II-23
Campaign Management Software II-24
Integration of Call Centers and Bank Branches II-24
Customer Differentiation II-24
Insurance Companies Lead in Call Center Technology Absorption II-24
Global Trends in Offshore Call Center Location II-24
Network Strategy - A Critical Component in selection of a New
Destination II-25
Global Outsourced Contact Center Market - An Overview II-25
North American IP Contact Center Market II-25
Benefits of IP Centers II-26
Obstacles for IP Deployment II-26
3. CONCEPTUAL OVERVIEW II-27Functional Definition II-27Call Center Activities II-27Inbound Call Reception and Routing II-27Automated Inbound Call Routing II-27Advantages of Automated inbound call routing applicationsinclude: II-27Outbound Telemarketing Call II-27Call Handling Time II-28Complaints Handling II-28Customer Information Services / Help Desks II-28Debt Chasing II-29Field Service Support II-29Field service and support activity advantages include: II-29Classification on the Basis of Ownership II-29In-House Centers II-29Outsourced Call Centers II-30Service Bureau II-30Classification on the basis of Operations II-30Inbound Call Centers II-30Outbound (Telemarketing) Centers II-30Nature of Services Offered II-30Consulting II-30Outsourcing II-30Training II-31Call Center Technologies-By Area of Application II-31Voice II-31Telephone Switches (ACDs) and Voice Networks II-31Voice Response Systems (IVR/VRU) II-32Speech Recognition Technologies II-32Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) II-32Data II-33Workstations and Databases II-33Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Tools II-33CRM Tools II-33Enterprise CRM II-33Mid-Market CRM II-34Customer Data Integration II-34Enterprise Analytics, Business Intelligence and DataWarehousing II-34Computer Telephony Integration (CTI) II-34Web II-34Website and E-mail II-34Website II-34E-Mail II-35Web Integration (Text chat and Web Calls) II-35Web Chat II-35Web Call-back II-35Fully Integrated Unified Messaging System II-35Multimedia Technologies II-35Systems II-36ACD Systems II-36Automatic Call Distributor (ACD) II-36Outbound System II-36Interactive Voice Response (IVR) Systems II-36Voice Messaging Systems II-37Simple Voice Message Broadcasting II-37Custom Voice Message Broadcasting II-37Voice Message Broadcasting and Touchphone Response II-37Software II-38Workforce Management Software II-38Workforce Automation Software II-38Sales Force Automation Software II-38For Sales Executives II-39For Sales Manager II-39Customer Interaction Software II-39CTI Enabling Software II-39Call Monitoring Software II-40
Table 3: Worldwide Call Centers Market (2011): Percentage
Breakdown of Call Center Spending by Major Vertical Markets -
Financial Services, Telecommunications, Manufacturing,
Transport and Others (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) II-41
Telecommunications II-41
Financial Services (Inclusive of Banks and Insurance Firms) II-42
Banks II-42
Banks Transform Call Centers for Organic Growth II-42
Methodologies for Effective Cross Selling II-42
Insurance Firms II-43
Hospitality II-43
Transportation II-43
Healthcare II-44
Manufacturing II-44
Retail and Distribution II-45
Utilities II-45
Outsourcing II-45
5. STRATEGIC INSIGHT II-46Site Location Strategies II-46Introduction to Site Location II-46The Basics II-46Major Parameters in Site Location II-46Labor, Labor and Labor II-46Education II-47Infrastructure II-47Cost II-47Labor Costs II-47Infrastructure and Technology Costs II-47Occupancy/Real estate Costs II-48Taxes II-48Start-up Costs II-48Other Factors in Site Selection II-48'Cross-Media Centers' - A Preview of Next Generation 'Contact'Strategies II-48Cross-Media Call Center Architecture II-49Queuing Architecture II-49Queue Engine II-49Contingency Strategies - Ensuring Business Continuity in aDisaster II-49Down Time Hurts in a Time-Sensitive Environment II-49Business Continuity Plan - The Basics II-49Other Considerations While Drafting a Business Continuity Plan II-50
CRM and Contact Centers - Two Worlds Apart II-51
The Contact Center Disharmony II-52
Contact Centers in Defense II-52
Complex Structural Setup II-52
Hierarchical Reporting Structure II-52
Time to Realign Priorities II-53
Evolution of the New Age Contact Centers: Critical Areas of
Focus II-53
In Conclusion II-53
The Modern Day Call Center II-54
Technologies in Use in a New Age Setup II-54
Skill-based Routing II-54
Routing Strategies II-54
Types of Contacts in a Contact Center II-55
7. RELATED INDUSTRY DISCUSSION II-56Customer Experience Management II-56CEM - Leveraging Call Center Data with Decision Making II-56CEM as a Value Proposition II-56Workforce Management II-57
Widely Dispersed Call Centers - A Rationale II-58
Motivators for Call Center Consolidation II-59
Costs of Scale II-59
9. PERTINENT REGULATORY ISSUES II-60Legal and Regulatory Framework II-60Predictive Dialing II-60Tring.. Tring Hello ! ??.? II-60The Preface to the Showdown II-60Privacy Legislations II-61Federal Laws prohibits Sale of Consumer Health Data II-61Cell Phone Legislations Zap Outbound Calls? II-61
Automatic Call Distributing (ACD) Products- From Standalone to
Open and Networked Systems II-62
Add-on/ACD Enhancement Products II-62
ACD Message Boards II-62
Digital Announcers/Automated Attendants/ Fax-on-Demand II-63
Digital Announcers II-63
Automated Attendants II-63
Fax-On-Demand II-63
Dialing Platforms - The Advent of Call Blending II-63
Contact Management II-63
Turnkey Solutions - Moving Onto PC/IP Platforms II-64
CTI Technologies on the Anvil II-64
CTI APIs and Middleware II-64
Placing of Outbound Calls II-64
Call Progress Detection II-64
Speech Recognition and Interactive Television Technologies II-65
Internet / Web-enabling Technologies for Call Centers II-65
Developments in Web-Enabling Technology II-65
Call-Through Technologies to Replace Call-Back and Text-Chat II-66
11. NEW PRODUCT/SERVICE INTRODUCTIONS II-67Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC) Launches EmergencyCall Centers II-67Jack Henry Launches a New Call Center Product Named jhaCallCenter II-67HP Launches New Solution for Revamping Enterprise Contact Centers II-67Adtech Unveils Cloud-Based Verint® Solution II-68Easy Office Unveils Enhanced Virtual Call Center Solution II-68SalesPortal Unveils New Campaign Dashboard for Contact CenterCampaign Analytics II-69Nextiva Unveils NextOS VoIP Technology Platform II-70NeoVox Enters into Agreement with Windstream II-70MSEDCL Establishes State-of-the-Art Contact Centre II-71Aurix Introduces Cloud Based Analyst 1.5 II-71Acqueon Launches AiQ 4.0 Solution with Advanced MobileApplication and Social MediaFeatures II-72Oki Introduces Cloud-Based Unique Customer-Specific EXaaS CallCenter Service II-72OBS Introduces Managed Contact Center Cloud-Based Service II-73M-Tel Introduces M-Tel Call Center 0700 and M-Tel Call Center0800 Service II-73
Convergys Introduces Interaction Composer and Developer Zone II-74
IntelePeer Introduces Contact Center Services to Enhance
Outbound Contact Centers' Performance and Revenue II-74
Verizon Introduces Verizon VoIP Inbound II-75
Step to Call Center Unveils Call Center Kit's Arabic Version II-75
QualiPlex Software Introduces Unite PBX v2.0 and Unite Call
Center v2.0 II-75
Shiftboard Launches Scheduling Solution II-76
Vodacom, Presence Technology and Inovo Introduces Call Center
Service II-76
SFR Business Team Unveils Pack Contact II-76
Officescape Introduces Software for Call Centers II-76
Vialinx Install On-Demand-Call Center Software of Five9 II-77
Zeacom Launches Record and Evaluate Module II-77
Chunghwa Forms joint Venture with Xiamen City's Government to
Manage Call Center Business II-77
Broadcore Commences Broadcore Call Center II-77
KUNNECT Introduces Hosted Call Center Solution II-78
Tadiran Telecom Introduces Composit Contact Pro II-78
13. RECENT INDUSTRY ACTIVITY II-79RACO Launches Omega Call Center Service II-79Telefonica Germany Launches ICC Call Center Platform forBusiness Customers II-79Zeacom Enters into a Partnership with Ronco Communications II-79Southwest Airlines Sets up a New Call Center in San Antonio II-80C3 Launches a New Customer Contact Center in Guatemala City II-80GDA Sets up a Call Center in Ghaziabad II-81MphasiS Sets up Two Contact Centers in Mangalore and Bhubaneswar II-81Investbank Partners with Artelco to Launch a New Contact Center II-81Toshiba Europe Launches a New Call Center in Prague II-82Aegis Commences a Call Center in Costa Rica II-82Crawford & Company Forms Joint Venture with Call Center Services II-82Spanlink Communications Enters into Partnership with Convergys II-82Airtel Enters into Partnership with Avaya II-83Consumer Cellular Inaugurates New Call Centre II-83Aegis Opens New Contact Center II-83Megafon Inaugurates Call Center for the Universiade 2013 Games II-83TSYS Managed Services Inaugurates New Call Center II-84Sitel Expands Call Center II-84KANA Purchases Ciboodle from Sword Group II-84Interactive Intelligence Purchases ATIO Contact Center Assets II-85SHL Merges with PreVisor II-85Consumer Cellular to Take over T-mobile Call Center II-86TelStrat Inks Distribution Agreement with Ingram Micro Asia II-86Connect First Inks Partnership with the Office Gurus II-87Genesys Inks Service Provider Agreement with KDDI II-87DSCI Launches Augmented iPBX Call Center Services II-87TTL Acquires EPICCenter Technology from EasyRun II-88Tech Mahindra Acquires Hutchison's Contact Center II-88Sykes Acquires Alpine Access II-893CLogic Enters into Agreement with VA Associates II-89Ameridial Introduces Inbound Call Center Channel for TMC II-90Tikal Networks Introduces CenterMeter Contact Center on DemandSolution II-91ATGStores Selects Avaya AuraTM Contact Center of Avaya II-91Teleperformance Colombia Establishes Contact Center II-91Microsoft Acquires Interest in 24/7 II-92NCO Group Merges with APAC Customer Services II-92Sitel Sets Up Call Center in Manila II-92Magma Group Partners with Respondez II-93Avaya Announces Interoperability between CallNACK Applicationof NACR with Avaya Collaboration Solutions II-93Avaya Establishes Novel Facility in Guangdong Province II-93Gexel Telecom to Install Contact Center Solution of Avaya toEnhance Customer Satisfaction II-94TalkTalk Telecom Group Selects Wipro BPO as Strategic Partner II-94Convergys Establishes High-tech Contact Center in Bogotá II-94Wipro BPO Establishes Manjakkudi Rural BPO Center in Tamil Nadu II-95Sitel to Establish Customer Care Call Center in Belgrade II-95Avaya Takes Over Sipera II-95The Capita Group Takes Over Ventura II-96ExlService Holdings Takes Over Outsource Partners International II-96Salmat Inks Agreement with Avaya II-97Avaya Takes Over Aurix II-97Cassidian Communications Signs Agreement with Avaya II-988x8 Acquires Contactual II-98SM Land Opens a Call Center in Mall of Asia Complex II-99Chatter Box to Acquire LCI Solutions' Call Center II-99M5 Networks Acquires Callfinity II-99Enghouse Buys CosmoCom II-99Maximus Inaugurates Customer Contact Center II-100Nexxlinx Buys Microdyne Outsourcing II-100VA Unveils Call Center for Women Veteran II-100BNP2TKI Rolls Out Halo TKI number 0800-1000 II-101Altitude Software Enters into Partnership with Umanis II-101ADCB Unveils Al Ain call center II-101LiveOps Takes Over Datasquirt II-102CallCopy Signs Reseller Agreement with BusComm II-102Intelisys Chooses inContact for Contact Center Software II-103Chatter Box Acquires Humsay I Global Services II-103USAN Unveils Hosted Contact Center News Website II-103RRA Sets Up Call Center II-104
Malaysia Airlines Selects Contact Centre Solutions of Avaya to
Improve Customer Experience and Profitability II-105
Chinatrust Commercial Bank Selects Total Contact Center
Solution of Avaya to Improve Customer Satisfaction II-105
Avaya Government Solutions Establishes Emergency 911 Call Center II-106
QPC Launches QPC Contact NowTM hosted Contact Management Platform II-106
Sitel Establishes Call Center II-106
Wipro Infotech Bags IT Outsourcing Contract from Vasan Eye Care II-107
Wipro Technologies Enters into Collaboration with Microsoft II-107
Wipro Inks Outsourcing Contract with TV Sundram Iyengar & Sons II-107
ATGStores Selects Avaya Aura™ Contact Center of Avaya II-108
Astute Acquires Speech Labs II-108
Five9 Utilizes Data Center of Internap for Cloud Based Call
Centers II-108
inContact Provides Hosted Call Center Solutions for EPIC II-108
Cincom Ties up with IBM II-109
inContact Signs Partnership Agreement with Verint Systems II-109
Teleperformance Acquires beCogent II-109
Moshi Moshi Hotline and Mitsui Set-Up Call Center Business in
Vietnam II-110
Sykes Enterprises to Establish Call Center in Berlin II-110
Teleperformance Initiates Costa Rican Call Center Operations II-110
Artfest International Sets Up Network Marketing Call Center II-110
Stream Global Services Completes eTelecare Global Solutions
Integration II-110
Teleperformance Snaps Up Contact Center Services Provider
Based in Turkey II-111
CCT Group Snaps Up Interactive Response Technologies II-111
Sykes Enterprises Snaps Up ICT Group II-111
Bharti Teletech and Avaya Enter into Agreement II-111
One To One Contacts Enters into Contracts with TOT Public and
State Railway of Thailand II-112
Macquarie Telecom Group Establishes MacquarieHUB II-112
Telekom and AsissTT Establish New Customer Care Center II-112
C3 to Establish Call Center in Idaho II-112
Rollins Deploys Upgraded EDGE 2020 and Interaction Optimizer
in Call Centers II-112
Hinduja Global Solutions Took Over Careline Services II-113
Sparsh BPO Services Signs Contract with Insurance Regulatory
and Development Authority II-113
Lancaster Newspapers Opens Call Center II-113
New York Daily News Deploys Five9 Virtual Call Center Software
of Five9 II-113
Videotron and Ministere de l'Emploi et de la Solidarite
Sociale to Open New Customer Contact Center in Gatineau II-114
Sitel Expands Call Center in Tenn II-114
Aegis to Take Over Call Center of Sallie Mae in Texas II-114
Pinnacle Security Upgrades Technology and Expands Call Center
in Utah II-114
Ctrip.com International Opens New Customer Care Center in Jiangsu II-114
Ufone Opens New Customer Care Center in Lahore II-114
Mortgage Contracting Services Introduces Call Center Service II-115
Client Services Launches Call Center in Lenexa II-115
UP Power Launches Computerized Call Centre II-115
Sales Focus Establishes Call Centre in Kansas II-115
LiveOps Enters into Partnership with Keniks II-115
Teleperformance to Establish Contact Center II-116
Oki Networks Improves Call Centre System II-116
Hinduja Global Solutions Establishes Call Center in Iloilo II-116
Servion Consolidates Call Centre Operations for Kotak Group II-116
Econet Starts Biggest Call Center II-117
Allconnect Establishes New Sales Center in Virginia II-117
CosmoCom and Tata Communications Enter into Partnership with S
Tel II-117
Gartner Magic Quadrant Includes Aegis for North American CRM
Contact Center BPO II-117
Lockheed Martin and U.S. Census Bureau Unveil Call Center in Utah II-118
Sales Focus Establishes Inside Sales Call Center II-118
DYXnet Opens IP Call Center II-118
Trustwave Set Up New Compliance Call Center II-118
Coolpad Introduces the First 3G Video Call Center II-119
Cox Communication to Close the Roanoke Call Center II-119
Noble Systems Acquires Liberation® Product line from
TeleDirect International II-119
Noble Systems Acquires TouchStar Assets II-120
Genesys Snaps Up SDE Software Development Engineering II-120
Avaya Snaps Up Agile Software II-120
Advanis Snaps Up Itracks Call Center II-121
Avaya to Unveil New Customer Service Solutions II-121
LG Electronics Launches Call Center in Lebanon II-121
CNH Parts & Services Starts Operations at Technical Call-Center II-122
Teleperformance India Begins Operations at New Contact Center
in India II-122
Affiliated Computer Services Snaps Up e-Services Group
International II-122
Transcom to Establish Call Center in Philippines II-123
Avaya Acquires Nortel Enterprise Solutions II-123
Aspect Takes Over Assets of AIM Technology II-123
Dell to Take Over Perot Systems II-124
Colorado Springs Utilities Adopts Qwest Call Center Solution II-124
15. FOCUS ON SELECT GLOBAL PLAYERS II-126[24]7 Inc. (USA) II-126Acumen Telecomunicaciones SA de CV (Mexico) II-126Alliance Data Systems, Inc. (US) II-126Expert Global Solutions, Inc. (USA) II-126Aspect Software Inc.(USA) II-127ATOS S.A. (France) II-127Avaya Inc. (US) II-127BT Communications (Ireland) Limited (Ireland) II-128Capita Customer Management Limited (UK) II-128Convergys Corp. (US) II-128Datamatics Global Services Limited (India) II-128Dimension Data Group Company (South Africa) II-129Merchants Limited (UK) II-129Entel Call Center (Chile) II-129EXL Service Holdings, Inc. (US) II-130Genpact (India) II-130GTL Ltd. (India) II-130HCL BPO Services NI Ltd (Ireland) II-130IBM Global Process Services Pvt. Ltd (India) II-131Plusoft Informatica Ltda (Brazil) II-131Quality Plus Callscan Australia Pty Ltd. (Australia) II-131Sitel (US) II-131Stream Global Services Inc. (US) II-132Sykes Enterprises, Inc. (US) II-132Teleperformance SA (France) II-132TRG Customer Solutions (US) II-132West Corporation (US) II-133Wipro Technologies Ltd (India) II-133
Table 4: World Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis for
Call Centers by Geographic Region - US, Canada, Japan, Europe,
Asia-Pacific (excluding Japan), Latin America and Rest of
World Markets Independently Analyzed with Annual Service
Revenues in US$ Million for Years 2010 through 2018 (includes
corresponding Graph/Chart) II-134
Table 5: World Historic Review for Call Centers by GeographicRegion - US, Canada, Japan, Europe, Asia-Pacific (excludingJapan), Latin America and Rest of World Markets IndependentlyAnalyzed with Annual Service Revenues in US$ Million for Years2004 through 2009 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) II-135
Table 6: World 11-Year Perspective for Call Centers by
Geographic Region - Percentage Breakdown of Service Revenues
for US, Canada, Japan, Europe, Asia-Pacific (excluding Japan),
Latin America and Rest of World Markets for Years 2004, 2011
and 2018 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) II-136
A.Market Analysis III-1
Overview III-1
Outlook III-1
General Introduction III-1
Table 7: North American Call Centers Industry (2011):
Percentage Breakdown of Agents by In-House and Outsourced
Positions (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-2
MNCs Chant the Outsourcing Mantra for Global Expansion III-2
Outsourcing by Sector III-2
Financial Services III-2
Transportation Sector III-2
Distribution Sector III-2
Telecommunication Sector III-3
Insurance and Utilities III-3
Key Issues III-3
Cost Reduction Continues to Dictate Outsourcing Decisions III-3
Proximity to Headquarters - Prime Consideration for Site
Selection III-3
Industry Trends III-4
Call Centers - Getting Bigger and More Sophisticated III-4
Web-Enabled Call Centers Set to Outpace Conventional Ones III-4
Call Centers - A Major Employer III-5
Workforce Turnover - On the Higher Side? III-5
Outsourcing Adversely Affects US Call Center Jobs III-5
Companies Emphasize on Quality of Customer Service III-6
Hosted Contact Center Solutions Gain Traction III-6
Vertical Market Trends III-6
Table 8: US Contact Centers Industry (2011): Percentage
Breakdown of Call Centers by Vertical Industry - Retail and
Distribution, Finance, Manufacturing, Services, Telecom,
Public Services, IT, and Others (includes corresponding
Graph/Chart) III-7
Table 9: US Contact Center Market (2011): PercentageBreakdown of Revenues by Leading Companies (includescorresponding Graph/Chart) III-7
Table 10: US Contact Center Market (2011): Percentage
Breakdown of Revenues by Type of Services Offered (includes
corresponding Graph/Chart) III-7
Call Center Software Market in the US III-8
Superior functionality is the New Customer Mantra for Software III-8
IVR Set to Make Deeper Inroads into the Call Center Market III-8
Workforce Management Software Finds More Takers III-9
Regulatory Issues in the US Industry III-9
US Vs Europe - Safe Harbor and Effect on Call Centers III-9
Safe Harbor - What it Entails III-9
Privacy Protection Policies - The Trans- Atlantic Divide III-10
How 'Safe' is Safe Harbor? III-10
Legal and Regulatory Framework III-11
Insurance Call Centers in California to Employ Licensed Agents III-11
DNC Registery III-11
Federal Laws prohibits Sale of Consumer Health Data III-12
Product/Service Launches III-12
Strategic Corporate Developments III-13
Key Players III-22
B.Market Analytics III-26
Table 11: US Recent Past, Current & Future Analysis for Call
Centers Market with Annual Service Revenues in US$ Million
for Years 2010 through 2018 (includes corresponding
Graph/Chart) III-26
Table 12: US Historic Review for Call Centers Market withAnnual Service Revenues in US$ Million for Years 2004through 2009 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-27
A.Market Analysis III-28
Current and Future Analysis III-28
Availability of Large English-Speaking and Multilingual
Talent Pools III-28
Issues and Trends III-28
Unsolicited Telemarketing - Canada Fights Back III-28
Call Centers into Less Populous Towns III-28
B.Market Analytics III-29
Table 13: Canadian Recent Past, Current & Future Analysis
for Call Centers Market with Annual Service Revenues in US$
Million for Years 2010 through 2018 (includes corresponding
Graph/Chart) III-29
Table 14: Canadian Historic Review for Call Centers Marketwith Annual Service Revenues in US$ Million for Years 2004through 2009 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-30
A.Market Analysis III-31
Current and Future Analysis III-31
Strategic Corporate Developments III-31
B.Market Analytics III-32
Table 15: Japanese Recent Past, Current & Future Analysis
for Call Centers Market with Annual Service Revenues in US$
Million for Years 2010 through 2018 (includes corresponding
Graph/Chart) III-32
Table 16: Japanese Historic Review for Call Centers Marketwith Annual Service Revenues in US$ Million for Years 2004through 2009 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-33
A.Market Analysis III-34
Current and Future Analysis III-34
Issues and Trends III-34
Finance Industry Seeks Call Center Services III-34
An Important Hub III-34
Highly Fragmented Market III-35
EU Call Center Revenues - A Four Nation Show? III-35
Locational Parameters - Important Trends III-35
Priority Requirements III-36
High-Profile Locations III-36
Ireland, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom III-36
The Downside of the Success Story III-36
Alternate Regional Destinations III-37
Sub-regional Concept Rules Supreme III-37
Market Drivers III-37
Educated and Multilingual Workforce - An Advantage III-37
CRM Technologies Herald Evolution of Multimedia Contact
Centers III-38
Rise in Internet and e-Commerce Spells Growth for Web-based
Call Centers III-38
Market Trends III-38
Growth Moves to Small & Suburban Towns III-38
Call centers Grow Techno-centric III-38
Competition - Having it the Customer's way III-39
Outsourced Call Center Agent Positions on the Rise III-39
Internet-Call Center Integration Takes Wings in Europe III-40
Multimedia Contact Centers Spring up in Unexploited Markets III-40
Technology Trends III-41
Voice over IP - Preferred Medium in Web-based Call Centers III-41
Speech Recognition Technologies Hold Promising Potential III-41
CTI - The New Buzz Word on the Rounds III-41
Vertical Industry Highlights III-42
Leading Call Center Revenue Earners III-42
Banks and Insurance Step up the Gas on Call Center Usage III-42
Banks III-42
Insurance Companies III-42
B.Market Analytics III-43
Table 17: European Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis
for Call Centers by Geographic Region - France, Germany,
Italy, UK, Spain, Russia, The Netherlands, Ireland, Sweden
and Rest of Europe Markets with Annual Service Revenues in
US$ Million for Years 2010 through 2018 (includes
corresponding Graph/Chart) III-43
Table 18: European Historic Review for Call Centers byGeographic Region - France, Germany, Italy, UK, Spain,Russia, The Netherlands, Ireland, Sweden and Rest of EuropeMarkets with Annual Service Revenues in US$ Million forYears 2004 through 2009 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-44
Table 19: European 15-Year Perspective for Call Centers by
Geographic Region - Percentage Breakdown of Service Revenues
for France, Germany, Italy, UK, Spain, Russia, The
Netherlands, Ireland, Sweden and Rest of Europe Markets for
Years 2004, 2011 & 2018 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-45
4a. FRANCE III-46A.Market Analysis III-46Current and Future Analysis III-46A Leading West European Call Center Market III-46Home Banking & Finance Sectors Drive Call Center Growth III-46Table 20: French Call Centers Industry (2011): PercentageBreakdown of Call Centers by Vertical Industry - Telecom,Services, Finance/Banking/ Insurance, IT and Others(includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-47Key Players III-47B.Market Analytics III-48Table 21: French Recent Past, Current & Future Analysis forCall Centers Market with Annual Service Revenues in US$Million for Years 2010 through 2018 (includes correspondingGraph/Chart) III-48
Table 22: French Historic Review for Call Centers Market
with Annual Service Revenues in US$ Million for Years 2004
through 2009 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-49
4b. GERMANY III-50A.Market Analysis III-50Current and Future Analysis III-50German Call Centers - An Introduction III-50Issues and Trends III-50Key Issues III-50Stringent Labor Laws Restrict Rapid Growth III-50Liberalization Opens Avenues for Overseas Players III-51Stringent Regulatory Norms Set Up High Entry Barriers III-51Market Trends III-51Increased Use of Mobile Phones Restrict Web-Enabled Services III-51ACD Systems - Promising Potential for Hardware Vendors III-52Market Drivers III-52Exceptionally High Standards of Customer Service III-52Availability of Skilled and Relatively Low cost Labor III-52Well-developed Infrastructure Facilities III-52Strategic Corporate Development III-53B.Market Analytics III-53Table 23: German Recent Past, Current & Future Analysis forCall Centers Market with Annual Service Revenues in US$Million for Years 2010 through 2018 (includes correspondingGraph/Chart) III-53
Table 24: German Historic Review for Call Centers Market
with Annual Service Revenues in US$ Million for Years 2004
through 2009 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-54
4c. ITALY III-55A.Market Analysis III-55Current and Future Analysis III-55B.Market Analytics III-55Table 25: Italian Recent Past, Current & Future Analysis forCall Centers Market with Annual Service Revenues in US$Million for Years 2010 through 2018 (includes correspondingGraph/Chart) III-55
Table 26: Italian Historic Review for Call Centers Market
with Annual Service Revenues in US$ Million for Years 2004
through 2009 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-56
4d. THE UNITED KINGDOM III-57A.Market Analysis III-57Current and Future Analysis III-57Largest and the Most Developed III-57Financial Services Command More Share III-57Issues and Trends III-58UK Contact Center Industry - Growth Despite Adversities III-58UK Companies Reverting to Domestic Call Centers III-58Strategic Corporate Developments III-58Key Players III-60B.Market Analytics III-61Table 27: UK Recent Past, Current & Future Analysis for CallCenters Market with Annual Service Revenues in US$ Millionfor Years 2010 through 2018 (includes correspondingGraph/Chart) III-61
Table 28: UK Historic Review for Call Centers Market with
Annual Service Revenues in US$ Million for Years 2004
through 2009 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-62
4e. SPAIN III-63A.Market Analysis III-63Current and Future Analysis III-63Market Drivers III-63Multilingual Workforce III-63Government Initiatives III-64B.Market Analytics III-64Table 29: Spanish Recent Past, Current & Future Analysis forCall Centers Market with Annual Service Revenues in US$Million for Years 2010 through 2018 (includes correspondingGraph/Chart) III-64
Table 30: Spanish Historic Review for Call Centers Market
with Annual Service Revenues in US$ Million for Years 2004
through 2009 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-65
4f. RUSSIA III-66A.Market Analysis III-66Current and Future Analysis III-66Issues and Trends III-66Leading Call Center Investors III-66Poor Telecom Infrastructure Continues to Impede RapidMarket Growth III-66Strategic Corporate Developments III-66B.Market Analytics III-67Table 31: Russian Recent Past, Current & Future Analysis forCall Centers Market with Annual Service Revenues in US$Million for Years 2010 through 2018 (includes correspondingGraph/Chart) III-67
Table 32: Russian Historic Review for Call Centers Market
with Annual Service Revenues in US$ Million for Years 2004
through 2009 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-68
4g. THE NETHERLANDS III-69A.Market Analysis III-69Current and Future Analysis III-69Netherlands- Mature Call Center Market III-69The "King of Benelux" Call Center Market III-69Favorite Call Center Destination for Pan-European Operations III-69Market Drivers III-70Multilingual Workforce with a Diverse Cultural Background III-70Availability of Formally Qualified Computer-Literate Labor III-70Relatively Low Labor and Operational Costs III-71Hassle-free Legal & Regulatory Framework III-71No Bar on B2C and B2B Telemarketing Calls III-71Widespread Consumer Acceptance to Products/Services viaCall Centers III-71B.Market Analytics III-72Table 33: The Netherlands Recent Past, Current & FutureAnalysis for Call Centers Market with Annual ServiceRevenues in US$ Million for Years 2010 through 2018(includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-72
Table 34: The Netherlands Historic Review for Call Centers
Market with Annual Service Revenues in US$ Million for Years
2004 through 2009 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-73
4h. IRELAND III-74A.Market Analysis III-74Current and Future Analysis III-74A Leading European Call Center Market III-74Preferred Destination for US Players III-74Large Educated Workforce Capable of Handling All MajorEuropean Languages III-74Relatively Low Costs of Employment III-75Government Initiatives III-75Issues & Trends III-75A Maturing Market III-75Increased Competition from Asian Nations III-75Key Players III-76B.Market Analytics III-77Table 35: Irish Recent Past, Current & Future Analysis forCall Centers Market with Annual Service Revenues in US$Million for Years 2010 through 2018 (includes correspondingGraph/Chart) III-77
Table 36: Irish Historic Review for Call Centers Market with
Annual Service Revenues in US$ Million for Years 2004
through 2009 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-78
4i. SWEDEN III-79A.Market Analysis III-79Current and Future Analysis III-79Ranked Among Evolving European Call Center Markets III-79Market Drivers III-79Relatively Low Labor Cost III-79Availability of Educated and Internet-Savvy Workforce III-80B.Market Analytics III-80Table 37: Swedish Recent Past, Current & Future Analysis forCall Centers Market with Annual Service Revenues in US$Million for Years 2010 through 2018 (includes correspondingGraph/Chart) III-80
Table 38: Swedish Historic Review for Call Centers Market
with Annual Service Revenues in US$ Million for Years 2004
through 2009 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-81
4j. REST OF EUROPE III-82A.Market Analysis III-82Current and Future Analysis III
To order this report:Call_Center Industry: Global Call Centers Industry
Nicolas Bombourg
Email: [email protected]
Intl: +1 805-652-2626
SOURCE Reportlinker


text:
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subset: commoncrawl


text:
Open For Hours And Hours And Jack Bauers
(I worked at check cashing store that is open 24 hours a day. We only close for major holidays such as Christmas. One Christmas Eve, we are getting ready to close the store for the holiday and are asking the last customers to make sure the door shuts all the way behind them so that it'll lock and no one else can enter.)
Me: "Thank you sir, and we're closing. So, if you could just make sure the door closes behind you, I would appreciate it."
Customer: "I thought you guys were 24 hours."
Me: "We normally are, but we close for holidays so that we can spend them with our families."
Customer: "That's just ridiculous!"


text:
Racing just turned the corner!
— Tagline
Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing (ソニック&セガオールスターズレーシング Sonikku ando Sega Ōru-Sutāzu Rēshingu?) (known as Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing with Banjo-Kazooie on the Xbox 360 version) is a 2010 crossover kart racing video game in the Sega Superstars series developed by Sumo Digital[1] and published by Sega. It was released for the Nintendo Wii, Nintendo DS, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Microsoft Windows on 23 February 2010 in North America while in Europe on 26 February 2010. A mobile version of the game was developed by Gameloft. The iOS version of the game was released on 2011. An arcade version was tested in some arcades on January 2011 and was then released for sale on March 2011.
In 2012, Sega and Feral Interactive announced that the game will be available for the Mac on its following Summer along with Sega Superstars Tennis. For the Mac, All-Stars Racing will feature online multiplayer by using Game Center which the Windows version lacked, which will be added in the next version of Mac OS X, Mountain Lion. On 4 April 2013, the game was released by Feral Interactive on the Mac as a Mac App Store exclusive. Feral Interactive (Mac)[2]
The PlayStation 3 version was available to be streamed on the PlayStation 4 and PC via the PS Now subscription service, with PlayStation 3, PlayStation Vita, Sony Bravia Smart TV (2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016 models), Sony Blu-Ray players and Samsung Smart TV support for the service being dropped in 2017. It was later being removed from the service.
A sequel, Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed, was released in 2012.
The game plays similarly to other kart racing games such as Mario Kart, with characters collecting power-ups to boost their speed or hamper their opponents. Like Sumo's previous Sega game, Sega Superstars Tennis, each character has a "Star Move" unique to them, such as Sonic and Shadow transforming into Super Sonic and Super Shadow respectively, that they can use against their opponents. The game has multiplayer options for up to four players on split-screen and eight players online.[1]
Vehicles are separated into three different categories: car, bike, and hovercraft. As the terrain on the tracks will vary, vehicles can be either assisted or hindered by the surfaces they drive upon. Cars vary in speed and weight, with some performing better on some terrains than others. Bikes have fast acceleration and can perform wheelies for a speed boost, but can be easily bullied by heavier vehicles. Hovercrafts are not affected by any terrain and are able to perform multiple boosts after a jump, but they have poor handling and have low acceleration. All of the vehicles also have their own specific engine sounds. Sega Miles that can be spent in the in-game shop to unlock additional content such as characters, tracks, art, and songs.[3]
The game has customizable multiplayer options for local and online play, including Free Races and Arena Modes. There is also a Grand Prix, Time Trial, and Mission mode.[4][5][6]
The game was showcased at E3 2009, where it was stated that the final version of the game would have over 20 different characters.[7]
Characters drive vehicles that relate to the character. The courses that appear in the game are references to various Sonic and Sega titles.
On November 25, 2009, a special press event about the game was held in France, where the Nintendo DS version made its playable debut.
Playable characters
As with the previous entries in the Sega Superstars series, the game features characters from the Sonic the Hedgehog series and other Sega franchises.
At the start of the game, players can choose from Sonic, Tails, Dr. Eggman, Shadow, Amy, AiAi, Amigo, Billy Hatcher, and any console exclusive characters and DLC characters (Mii on the Wii, and Avatar and Banjo & Kazooie (Xbox 360), Metal Sonic & Ryo Forklift on the Xbox 360 & PlayStation 3 as DLC characters). Other characters are unlocked by purchasing them with Sega Miles.
|All-Star Move
|All-Star Theme
Sonic the Hedgehog
|Sonic the Hedgehog
Super Sonic: Sonic pulls out the Chaos Emeralds to become Super Sonic, then does a supersonic boost down the track that flips any character he comes close to.
|Invincibility theme - Sonic Heroes
Miles "Tails" Prower
|Sonic the Hedgehog
Tails Tornado: Tails presses a button and his plane performs a vertical barrel roll, making a huge tornado that pulls him forward while sucking up opponents and items in its path.
DS Changes: Tails travels forwards while spinning the Tornado Racer until the All-Star is over.
|Believe in Myself - Sonic Adventure 2
Amy Rose
|Sonic the Hedgehog
Piko Hammer: Amy pulls out her Piko Piko Hammer and madly swings it around to smash anyone unlucky enough to get in her way.
|My Sweet Passion - Sonic Adventure
Knuckles the Echidna
|Sonic the Hedgehog
Emerald Power: Powered up by the Master Emerald, Knuckles glides above the track and, by punching the ground, can unleash an earthquake that stuns and flips all opponents.
DS Changes: Hammer Punch shock wave is short range only.
|Unknown From M.E. - Sonic Adventure 2
Dr. Eggman
|Sonic the Hedgehog
Missile Madness: The Egg Monster transforms and takes off down the track, launching destructive rockets that wipe out rivals and leave Eggman-shaped clouds.
DS Changes: Fires normal rockets instead; otherwise the same.
|Egg Albatross - Sonic Heroes
Shadow the Hedgehog
|Sonic the Hedgehog
Super Shadow: Shadow whips out the Chaos Emeralds to become Super Shadow and can launch Chaos Spears while flying down the track at high speed.
|Chaos Control theme - Shadow the Hedgehog
Big the Cat
|Sonic the Hedgehog
|Green Hopper
Giant Froggy: Froggy grows in size immensely and Big holds on to its tail as Froggy hops on anybody in its path.
DS Changes: Big disappears and is not seen holding on to Froggy.
|Fish Hits! - Sonic Adventure
Metal Sonic (DLC; Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3)
|Sonic the Hedgehog
|Metal Booster
Maximum Overdrive: After transforming into a missile-like shape, Metal Sonic's bike speeds up and deploys two pads that fly in front of him, emitting lightning bolts between them.
|Metallic Madness - Sonic the Hedgehog CD
Bonanza Bros. (Mobo and Robo)
|Bonanza Bros.
Blimp Strike: Mobo hops in their blimp and attacks nearby racers with bombs.
DS Changes: Robo joins Mobo in the blimp.
|Level Complete - Bonanza Bros.
|Samba de Amigo
Samba de Party: Amigo speeds up and hypnotizes the other racers with his rhythm. Then once he passes by an opponent, they follow him in a conga line and start dancing.
DS Changes: Amigo only slows the other racers.
|Title Screen - Samba de Amigo
|Fantasy Zone
Fantasy Thorn: Lets the player choose from three items to use on opponents (a rocket booster, one big missile, and four smaller missiles). The player highlights an option using the steering controls, and the highlighted option is selected when a few seconds have elapsed.
DS Changes: Works like Alex Kidd's All-Star.
|Don't Stop - Super Fantasy Zone
Billy Hatcher
|Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg
Egg Rodeo: After letting out a "cock-a-doodle-doo", Billy hops onto a giant egg like a circus ball and runs on it to squash his opponents.
|Theme Song - Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg
|Jet Set Radio
Tag Jamming: Starts skating, and can also spray paint on nearby racers to obstruct their view.
|Jet Set Groove 3 - Jet Set Radio Future
Ryo Hazuki
Working Man: Gets in his signature forklift and can toss opponents.
DS Changes: Works the same but the bike disappears before the forklift appears and vice versa when over.
|Earth and Sea - Shenmue
|Ryo Hazuki: Forklift (DLC; Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3)
Working Man: Shakes his fist, steps on the gas, and can toss opponents.
|Earth and Sea - Shenmue
Alex Kidd
|Alex Kidd
Peticopter: Hops into a mini-helicopter, allowing him to shoot damaging projectiles at opponents.
|Main Theme - Alex Kidd in Miracle World
|Space Channel 5
Tension Blast: Ulala stands on top of her hover craft and dances as Morolians circle the other racers, causing them to dance.
DS Changes: Works like Amigo's DS All-Star.
|Asteroid Belt Go! Go! Astrobeat Jr. - Space Channel 5
B.D. Joe
|Crazy Taxi
Crazy Boost: A passenger gets in his taxi, causing BD Joe to get a boost of speed.
DS Changes: No passenger hops in; otherwise the same.
|Generic rock riff
ChuChus (Chuih, ChuPea, ChuBei & ChuBach)a [8]
|ChuChu Rocket!
Cat-Walker: Normal ChuChus circle the other racers as a giant Kapu-Kapu appears and stomps down the track with Chuih riding on its head.
|Network Play ~ We Have A Winner! - Chuchu Rocket!
Zobio and Zobikoa
|The House of the Dead
Run-a-Way Love: Zobio drinks a radioactive potion, grows big, and runs around with Zobiko riding his back as Zobio smashes anybody in its path.
DS Changes: Zobio does a swipe instead of a ground pound; also Zobiko isn't riding on his shoulders.
|Clear - House of the Dead II
|Super Monkey Ball
Super Monkey Roll: AiAi gets in his marble along with other characters from Super Monkey Ball following him in their marbles. They then speed up and run over the other racers.
DS Changes: Aiai is solo; the other monkeys don't join in.
|Bonus Stage - Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz
Jacky and Akiraa
|Virtua Fighter
Virtua Fight: Akira jumps out of the car and punches it, using Tetsuzanko, sending it flying forward with incredible speed and knocking out anything in its path.
DS Changes: Jacky attacks by spinning the car when the item button is pressed.
|Akira's Theme - Virtua Fighter 5
Banjo and Kazooie (Xbox 360 exclusive)
Jiggy Rain: Kazooie pecks Banjo's head, then pulls out her magical wrench from Nuts & Bolts and causes Jiggies to rain down on the track, blocking and spinning out the other racers.
DS Changes: Not in DS version.
|Power-up/Main Theme - Banjo-Kazooie
Xbox 360 Avatar (Xbox 360 exclusive)
|The Xbox 360 Avatars (The New Xbox Experience)
Party Power: Four Avatar friends pick up the player's car and start running while knocking out anything in their path.
Mii (Wii exclusive)
|Mii Channel
Parade Power: Four of the player's Miis pick up your car and start running, knocking out anybody in the way.
Changes in the DS version
- Zobio and Zobiko are replaced with Zobio
- The Bonanza Bros. are replaced with Mobo (Bonanza Bro. in blue)
- The ChuChus were replaced with Chuih (blue ChuChu)
- Jacky & Akira are replaced with Jacky Bryant
Tracks and Cups
Chao Cup
- Seaside Hill - Whale Lagoon
- Billy Hatcher - Icicle Valley
- Casino Park - Roulette Road
- Carnival Town - Sunshine Tour ^a
Graffiti Cup
- Tokyo-To - Shibuya Downtown
- Curien Mansion - Outer Forest
- Final Fortress - Turbine Loop
- Jumble Jungle - Treetops
Egg Cup
- Billy Hatcher - Rampart Road
- Final Fortress - Dark Arsenal
- Carnival Town - Jump Parade
- Casino Park - Pinball Highway
Horror Cup
- Curien Mansion - Sewer Scrapes
- Seaside Hill - Lost Palace
- Detritus Desert - Sandy Drifts
- Tokyo-To - Rokkaku Hill
Samba Cup
- Carnival Town - Rocky-Coaster ^b
- Tokyo-To - Highway Zero
- Curien Mansion - Deadly Route
- Seaside Hill - Ocean Ruin
Monkey Cup
- Casino Park - Bingo Party
- Billy Hatcher - Lava Lair
- Pirates Ocean - Monkey Target
- Final Fortress - Thunder Deck
^a The race course "Studio Amigo" replaces "Sunshine Tour" in the Nintendo DS version.
^b The race course "Sun Fair" replaces "Rocky-Coaster" in the Nintendo DS version.
In "Studio Amigo" on the DS it has a secret route, but in the PS3/XBOX 360 instruction booklet, it shows the track of Studio Amigo, not 'Sunshine Tour'
|Mission Number
|Mission Name
|Playable Racer
|Sonic Crush!
|Rival Race
|Mardis Gras!
|Fight to the Finish!
|Treasure Island!
|White Knuckle Time!
|Hedgehog Target Practice!
|Dr. Eggman
|Hit Contest
|Graffiti Speed Star!
|Seaside Cup
|Grand Prix
|Egg-Stremely Simple!
|Billy Hatcher
|Time Gates
|Race Your Bets!
|Alex Kidd
|Jet Set Slide!
|Egg-Citing Times!
|Billy Hatcher
|Hit Contest
|Emerald Snatcher!
|Dr. Eggman
|Beat the Dealer!
|Rival Race
|Fiesta Food Dodge!
|Big the Cat
|Blizzard Cup
|Billy Hatcher
|Grand Prix
|Fiesta Clean-Up Crew!
|Big the Cat
|Hit Contest
|Jet Set Race!
|Nitro Nights!
|Zobio & Zobiko
|Seafood Dinner!
|Hit Contest
|Alex Kidd
|Monkey Capsules, I Love 'Em!
|Time Gates
|Sky Pirate!
|Bonanza Bros.
|Battle Race
|Tokyo-To Cup
|Grand Prix
|Battle Race
|Spooky Speedway!
|Maraca Madness!
|Dr. Eggman
|Banana Bonus!
|Water Slide!
|Time Gates
|Fare Game!
|B.D. Joe
|Rival Race
|Chu Chu Avenue!
|Hit Contest
|Carnival Cup
|Grand Prix
|Big Banker Payout!
|Creepy Crawlies!
|Jacky & Akira
|Fortress Fiasco!
|Hidden Ring Stash!
|To Drift or Not to Drift?
|B.D. Joe
|Time Gates
|Monkey Muddle!
|Drift From a Rose!
|Casino Cup
|Grand Prix
|Things Go Bump in the Night!
|Zobio & Zobiko
|Battle Race
|Monkey Trouble!
|Bonanza Bros.
|Score Gates
|Egg-Splosive Slide!
|Billy Hatcher
|Tokyo-To Show!
|Time Gates
|Have You Seen Lan Di?
|Factory Frolics!
|Rival Race
|Horrible Cup
|Zobio & Zobiko
|Grand Prix
|Going Bananas!
|Space Channel Drive!
|Battle Race
|Haunted Hoedown!
|Jacky and Akira
|Hit Contest
|Bonanza Blast!
|Bonanza Bros.
|Factory Crash!
|Time Gates
|House of the Dread!
|Slip Slide!
|Super Monkey Cup
|Grand Prix
|Lethal Lava!
|Final Countdown!
|Super Monkey's All!
|Rival Race
|Graffiti Dash!
|Beach Party!
|Battle Race
|Every Second Counts!
|Big the Cat
|Time Gates
|Robot Cup
|Dr. Eggman
|Grand Prix
|Save the Day Sonic!!
|Hit Contest
|Seaside Speedway
|Crazy Coin Grab
|Safety Gates
|Billy Hatcher
|White Knuckle
|Seaside Shoot'em
|Hit Contest
|House of the Egg
|Dr. Eggman
|Off the Clock
|B.D. Joe
|Golden Egg
|Billy Hatcher
|Timed Gates
|2 Beats per Minute
|Crazy Like A Fox
|Random Gates
|Where Hog?
|Seafood Danger
|Number One Hit
|Hit Contest
|Space Channel Drive
|Downtown Dash
|Alex Kidd
|Drift From A Rose
|Icicle Rally
|One of Those Rings
|Taxi Time Trial
|B.D. Joe
|Timed Gates
|Rose Hits
|Hit Contest
|Fun in the Sun
|Top Banana
|Hatcher Plan
|Billy Hatcher
|Random Gates
|Billy Gates Gruff
|Billy Hatcher
|Treetop Tussle
|A Ring in Time
|Hit 'N' Miss
|Kidd Gloves
|Alex Kidd
|Hit Contest
|Sliding Tackle
|A Gate of Chance
|Timed Gates
|Call the Doctor
|Dr. Eggman
|Banana Drama
|Watch the Bass Bins
|Jacky's Jet Set
|Jacky Bryant
|Reach For the Stars
|Random Gates
|Every Rose...
|Destination Drift
|B.D. Joe
|Timed Gates
|Which Came First?
|Hard to Earn
|Jump to the Beat
|Automaton Attack!
|Hit Contest
|Gates of Glory
|Dr. Eggman
|Random Gates
|Fist Full of Fun
|I'll Miss You
|Monkey Mayhem
|Race to the Future
|Jacky Bryant
|Claws for Thought
|Hit Contest
|Love to Gate You
|Timed Gates
|Chu's To Slide
|His Name Is Ryo
|Ryo Hazuki
|Them's the Gates
|Timed Gates
|Banananza Bros.
|Egg-Stravagant Ending
Character biographies
|To see this text, hit the "Expand" link to the right.
Sonic is the world's fastest hedgehog, capable of running at the speed of sound (768 mph). His other abilities include a "Spin Attack", a "Spin Dash" and his "Super Sonic" transformation which makes him indestructible and gives him the gift of run-flight. Sonic is not an expert swimmer, but is fearless – even of Dr. Eggman. Alongside his best friend Tails, Sonic runs around the world stopping Dr. Eggman's schemes. He drives the Speed Star – a car built by his friend Tails – it helps to make a fair race as no one can beat Sonic on foot.
Tails is a two-tailed yellow fox, equally at home, on the ground, in the air, or in the water. He's super-smart and likes nothing better than inventing and fixing planes, cars, and all things mechanical. He's an honorable and courageous friend in the face of danger. He teams up with his best friend Sonic – and their other friends – to help save the creatures of the South Island from Dr. Eggman. Tails built his own plane, the Tornado Racer, from parts found after an attempted invasion by Dr Eggman. Its short-winged design allows it to execute sharper turns than ordinary airplanes.
One-time leader of Team Rose, Amy and her friend Big the Cat are no strangers to speed. She is always running after Sonic, and in love with love. She's all about competition and style which is why her car, the Pink Cabriolet, is kitted out for speed and to look good. It is also designed to stay steady enough when she unleashes her lethal Piko-Piko Hammer.
|Dr. Eggman
Sonic's arch-enemy, and a genius to boot, Dr. Eggman loves whipping up crazy robotic armies that look like him to help with his dastardly schemes.His IQ level is 300. In his evil genius mind he dreams of creating a place called Eggmanland – and he will destroy anyone who tries to stop him. Dr. Eggman's all-terrain vehicle, the Egg Monster, has large wheels and an extra high riding seat so he can look down on everyone he overtakes and enjoy it!
Shadow is an artificial life form, created by Dr. Eggman's grandfather. His initial hatred of Sonic has now developed into a friendly rivalry. Like Sonic, Shadow is about speed – his acceleration and "Spin Attack" coming from his rocket skates. With Chaos Emeralds he can power up his Chaos Control and warp time and space. If he has all seven emeralds he can transform into Super Shadow – which, like Sonic, makes him invulnerable and gives him run-flight. Shadow uses a modified G.U.N. motorcycle known as the Dark Rider.
AiAi – A monkey hero, who has a destiny to marry MeeMee, and be father to a baby boy called – wait for it – Baby. In his monkey ball AiAi is fast, nimble and not too light. As the hero of the Super Monkey Ball series, he must save both Jungle Island and MeeMee from the wrath of the evil Dr. Bad-Boon. In his spare time, he likes to eat bananas, spend time with his family, play games and live easy. AiAi and friends have tried to design the fastest banana ever: his car – the Blazing Banana.
|Billy Hatcher
Billy Hatcher's an inquisitive boy from the human world. He eliminates everybody else in the race with his secret move of egg capture. To activate simply be in first and press X or A (depending on system) repeatedly. After saving a helpless chick from an attack by crows, Billy and his friends are transported to Morning Land by the Chicken King. With the courage bestowed upon him by the chicken elders, he dons the legendary rooster suit and embarks on a grand adventure to save Morning Land from eternal night. Billy must stop Dark Raven or the darkness will spread to the human world. Billy's Racing Rooster car is highly maneuverable, so watch out – he may wear a rooster suit, but nobody calls this boy chicken!
Amigo is one maraca-wielding, party-loving monkey! Along with his sister Amiga, and their friends Linda, Bingo, Bongo, Rio, Chumba and Wamba, Amigo's life is a non-stop carnival and the more skillfully he shakes his maracas, the hotter the party gets! Amigo's car is built into a giant maraca. Keep an eye on this guy, he's likely to break out the samba at any point!
Knuckles is the guardian of the Master Emerald, which gives Angel Island its power to float in the sky. He is the last of the Echidnas of the island's native people. His name comes from his powerful fists, which allow him to punch through rock and make him a skilled burrower and climber. He can also use his dreadlocks to glide for short distances. He drives a tough little all-terrain vehicle called the Land Breaker.
Big is a large, purple, long-eared cat. He's laid-back, easy-going, and has a gentle nature despite his prodigious strength. He loves to fish and is never without his trusty rod. He lives in the jungle near the Mystic Ruins with his best friend, Froggy, a small, green frog with a pointed tail. Big's adventures often involve him trying to find Froggy, who has a tendency to get himself lost or swallow a Chaos Emerald. Big's motorbike is called the Green Hopper. The bike may be small, but Big's size makes sure he won't be easily pushed around.
|Zobio and Zobiko
He, Zobio, was a prison guard. She, Zobiko, was an inmate thrown into jail by a mad doctor. Zobio decided to break out Zobiko, so that they could start a new life together. But will either of them ever really be free? They race in their Hotrod of Horror, a turbo-charged, armor-plated monstrosity.
Beat was a young "rudie" who ran away from home to join one of the gangs of Tokyo-to. He impressed fellow "rudies" Gum and Tab with his skating and graffiti skills in Shibuya bus station, and joined as a member of the gang, the GG's. Beat spends his time skating around fighting for turf with rival gangs by marking his territory with graffiti and eradicating others' tags. This attracts the attention of Police Captain Onishima and his S.W.A.T. team, who relentlessly pursue Beat and his friends. Beat drives a heavily customized street racer, with all the extras – including an extra bass system and neon under-lights!
|Jacky & Akira
Jacky's a skilled race car driver and powerful martial artist. He was once seriously injured in a racing accident and took two years to recover from his injuries. During that time he discovered a mystery group was behind his crash and it was no accident. He believes this same group is responsible for the disappearance of his sister, Sarah, but will he ever learn the truth? Akira was winner of the second World Fighting Tournament. He strives for perfection and trains relentlessly. He is currently the Master at Yuki Budokan. Jacky and Akira join forces to create a formidable racing team, competing in Jacky's muscle car Red Lightning.
Ulala was orphaned at an early age in a spaceship accident in which she was the sole survivor. She was rescued from the void of outer space by a Space Channel 5 reporter and ten years later, she's now their top reporter. She shot to fame when she confronted the Morolians, who imprisoned humans and forced them to dance against their will. She is mainly confronted by her frendly rival Pudding. She out-danced them at the same time as presenting her Swingin' Report Show. What a gal! Ulala races in her Astro Glider, a kind of floating pod.
|B.D. Joe
Always friendly and cheerful… that's B.D. Joe. He's at his happiest when he can bring a smile to the face of the customers in his 'Crazy Taxi'. B.D. Joe is master of driving – and talking. But that's not all. He can drum with just about anything and he's not too sloppy at card tricks either – anything to help fill other peoples' days with something a little special. He drives a customized yellow cab with the plate number '2HOP260' – 'To Hop To Go' – see? He's always ready to get things moving!
|Alex Kidd
Alex Kidd spent seven years living on Mt. Eternal, on planet Aries, studying Shellcore, an ancient art of shattering rocks with bare fists. Alex is a Prince of planet Aries, son of King Thunder and twin brother of Prince Egle. Alex must stop the evil Janken the Great and his minions from usurping his father. Battles are fought with a best-of-three game of rock, paper, scissors! Alex's vehicle of choice is his Sukopako Motorcycle – don't underestimate this small but very nimble motorbike.
|Ryo Hazuki
Ryo Hazuki dropped out of Yokosuka High School to embark on an epic journey to avenge his father's seemingly senseless murder. Trained in martial arts and driven by revenge, he hunts his father's killer, Lan Di, and seeks the Dragon Mirror that Lan Di took. Ryo can call on the help of many childhood and family friends, in particular Nozomi Harasaki who harbors a deep love for Ryo. But Ryo's quest will always take precedence for him. Ryo's wheels are a motorcycle he borrowed from close friend Naoyuki Ito.
|Ryo Hazuki - Forklift
Ryo Hazuki dropped out of Yokosuka High School to embark on an epic journey to avenge his father's seemingly senseless murder. Trained in martial arts and driven by revenge, he hunts his father's killer, Lan Di, and seeks the Dragon Mirror that Lan Di took. Ryo can call on the help of many childhood and family friends, in particular Nozomi Harasaki who harbors a deep love for Ryo. But Ryo's quest will always take precedence for him. Ryo's ride is the Number 5 forklift truck, on loan from his part-time job.
The ChuChus are cute space mice who use their super quick rockets to escape the jaws of the hungry space cats known as KapuKapus. The ChuChus race in a ChuChu Rocket, modified for maximum horizontal propulsion while comfortably seating four ChuChus for cat n' mouse chaos in space! The ChuChus are Chuih, Chubea, Chupea, and Chubach.
|Bonanza Bros.
Mobo and Robo are a pair of burglars who target a bank, a mansion, a casino, a mint, an art gallery and a treasury on their crime spree. With a combination of stealth and slapstick, they escape with all the loot in their trusty blimp. Racing in their Get-a-Way Wagon, they're sure to have plenty of sneaky tricks under the hood.
Opa-Opa is a sentient spacecraft, battling to stop the planet Menon from stealing the other planets' currency to build a huge fortress. In winning this battle, Opa-Opa hopes to restore peace to the Fantasy Zone. Opa-Opa can hover and fly using its wings or sprout feet to walk on the ground.
|Metal Sonic
Created by Dr. Eggman and programmed to destroy Sonic, Metal Sonic is a robotic copy of our hero and shares many of his abilities. He can mimic Sonic's spin dash and homing attack, and thanks to the jet engine in his torso, he can beat Sonic's acceleration and equal Sonic's speed! He has extra abilities however, due to his mechanoid form. These include his Ring Spark Field, telescopic limbs, and a forcefield known as the Black Shield.
|Banjo & Kazooie
Banjo and Kazooie are an adventurous bear and bird duo, always on hand to thwart the schemes of their nemesis, the rhyming hag Gruntilda. Banjo himself is a big, amiable Honey Bear, polite and well-mannered – in stark contrast to the Red-Crested Breegull Kazooie who lives in his backpack. Loud, sarcastic and rude, Kazooie's inability to keep her beak shut often lands the pair in trouble. Together they race in the Bolt Bucket, a quirky vehicle custom-built by their longstanding ally (and a real wizard in the garage) Mumbo Jumbo.
The Avatar is you! It likes what you like, it wears what you wear (or wish you could wear!), and does what you tell it to. Well, most the time anyway.
The Ava-Car 720 is the Avatar's mode of transport - a sleek, custom-built kart with all the mod-cons.
Miis are cartoonish caricatures of friends or family members that can be used in some games.
The Super Zoomer is the Mii's mode of transport in this game - a sleek, custom-built kart with all the mod-cons.
Capsule Items
These are the items that can be collected from Item Capsules. Some items can also come in a set of three, in which case the player can use all three at once by holding their "Fire" button for one second.
Mega Horn
|Creates a destructive soundwave that flips surrounding rivals.
Speed Shoes
|Sonic's signature Speed Shoes. They increase the racer's speed momentarily, allowing them to tackle their way through opponents and obstacles. Also available as a set of three; if used all at once, it provides a speed boost with equivalent length to three separate Speed Shoes.
Confusing Star
|Targets the nearest rival and confuses them by temporarily flipping their game screen upside down. The victim also briefly spins out.
Manual Rocket
|A rocket that when launched, homes in on the nearest opponent ahead of the player to flip them over. Also available as a set of three; if used all at once, they will target the nearest three drivers.
Energy Shield
|Creates an energy shield around the player for a limited time that withstands a single attack.
|A motion-activated mine that players can place in the path of oncoming vehicles in order to slow them down. They spin around the other racers by exploding on contact or after a certain time has passed. Also available as a set of three; if used all at once, they are placed in a line perpendicular to the front of the user's vehicle.
K.O. Glove
|A projectile covered in a boxing glove that when deployed, bounces off the sides of tracks to easily knock out rivals. Also available in a set of three; if used all at once, they are fired at different angles: one straight ahead (or straight behind) and the other two at a 30-degree angle.
Pocket Rainbow
|A small rainbow trap that temporarily obstructs the view of other racers with a spectrum of dazzling colors.
Giant Rocket
|A giant rocket that flies down the center of the track, usually acquired when falling behind in the race. Press the "use item" button again to trigger a devastating detonation that spins out other racers.
Bowling Bomb
|A big bomb that barrels out in front of the player and lands with an explosion that slows down rivals. In the DS version the bomb is thrown in an arc and explodes on impact with the ground. Also available as a set of three.
Following the release of Sega Superstars Tennis, Sumo Digital decided to do a racing title, based on their experience with recent Out Run titles. Sumo Digital executive producer, Steve Lycett, said that in an early prototype of the game, Sonic raced on foot, Dr. Eggman rode an Eggpod with legs, Tails flew in a biplane, Amy Rose drove a car, and Gilius Thunderhead, from Golden Axe, rode one of the Chickenleg creatures from the game. This version, however, was reportedly not fun to play, largely due to the varying sizes between the different characters, but also because the drift mechanic wouldn't work with racers who were on foot. According to Lycett:
It was later revised so that everyone would be in cars, bikes, or modified flyers.[9]
The soundtrack for the game consists of various old and new tracks from the various Sonic and Sega franchises, though it features original songs by various artists including Richard Jacques. Each course would start with one track, with more being unlocked as players earn Sega Miles. The Nintendo DS version of the game features Musical Instrument Digital Interface versions of the tracks composed by Allister Brimble.[3]
Planned characters
ToeJam & Earl were originally planned to be in Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing as a duo driving their spaceship, but Sega could not come to terms with ToeJam & Earl Productions co-founder Greg Johnson.[10] However, fans did call and mass-emailed Johnson for his characters' return.[11][12] He responded on the official Sega forums under the pseudonym 'Big Earl' stating "I'll give it another try and see if I can get the homies at Sega to talk again on the phone."[13][14] He later mentioned that the duo will not be appearing in the retail game, since it is too late in development.[15][16]
In its prototype form, Gilius Thunderhead from Golden Axe was a playable character who rode one of the Chickenleg monsters from the game. While he was scrapped from the game's roster, he does appear in the sequel. In his developer diary, Lycett makes it clear that this did not confirm him as a final character.[9] This was the case with Gilius, as he did not make the cut into the final roster. Lycett has also talked about Vyse from Skies of Arcadia in an interview with Gamereactor (Interesting to note, both Vyse and Thunderhead appear in the game's sequel).[17] Segata Sanshiro was also considered as a possible character, riding a Sega Saturn, as well as Nei from Phantasy Star II, though neither ended up in the roster.[18] Early in development, Mario was considered as a Wii-exclusive addition, but Sega decided against it so as not to cause cross-contamination with its Mario and Sonic series.[19]
Lycett has also mentioned there will be various cameo appearances from other Sega characters who didn't make it in the playable roster, such as Ristar in the Death Egg track.[20]
In the Wii and Steam versions of the game, one of the playing cards shown on the Roulette Road track, which would normally show Amy Rose, shows a picture of Sonia the Hedgehog from Sonic Underground, adapted from a fan art of the character by deviantARTist, RianaLD. The artwork was initially used as placeholder artwork, mistaken as official artwork. Sonic Team noticed the error and requested it be fixed, however it somehow remained on the Wii and 'low-res' PC versions of the track.[21] Lycett has offered his sincere apologies to the original artist, citing the incident as unintentional. The image was removed from the PC version however, the Wii version retained the image due to the lack of an update feature on the console.[22]
Theme Song
The theme song for the game is called "So Much More...". It is composed, produced and sung by Bentley Jones. It is in Bentley Jones' "So Much More" album as well. The song has different versions:
- So Much More... (Ballad Version)
- So Much More... (Fantazia Projekt Radio Mix)
- So Much More... (Fantazia Projekt Remix)
- So Much More... (Phunkstar Extended Mix)
- So Much More... (2015 Version)
Downloadable Content
It was officially confirmed that additional characters and tracks would be downloadable in the future.[23] Steve Lycett of Sumo Digital stated that NiGHTS could possibly be added as a downloadable character, if the game was successful.[24]
On March 25, 2010, an accessory and clothing line promoting Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing was added onto the Avatar Marketplace for the Xbox 360.
As a bonus for pre-ordering the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions in Europe and Australia, an additional Ryo Hazuki (called Ryo-F) was made available to download in which he would drive his forklift outside his All-Star move as his regular vehicle. This alternate vehicle was later made available for purchase on the Xbox Live Marketplace on April 1, 2010.
On April 1, 2010, a DLC pack consisting of Metal Sonic as a playable character and a Death Egg Zone track called "Egg Hangar" was leaked onto the European PSN Store. However, the pack was soon removed due to being released before its predetermined release date. The DLC was later released on the Xbox Live Marketplace on April 8, 2010, and on the PSN on April 22, 2010. Also, Ristar, another iconic Sega character, makes a cameo in the Egg Hangar race track, despite the high demand for him to be a playable character. [25][26]
It was stated on April 27, 2010 from Sumo Digital's Steve Lycett that Sega released all the DLC they requested Sumo to make (Metal Sonic and Ryo-F), and that future DLC depended solely upon whether or not Sega wished to have more made.[27]
Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing had sold 1.07 million copies at the end of Sega's fiscal 2010 (end of March 2010), making it one of the best-selling and most profitable Sega games of 2010 along with Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games, which had sold a ridiculous 6.53 million copies at the end of Sega's fiscal 2010.[28]
GamesMaster gave the game 83% for the console versions and 70% for the DS version, calling it 'the best kart racer on 360/PS3, but not quite the Mario Kart-beater we hoped for'. Nintendo Power gave the Wii version 8/10 and the DS version 6/10. Official Nintendo Magazine gave both the DS and Wii version 75%. Computer Bild Spiele, the top video game magazine in Germany, rated the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions a score of 2.32, which is about an A grade. The Wii version was given a 2.46 score.
JVN gave Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing a 16/20 score, which boils down to an 80% ranking. IGN gave all versions an 8.0 out of 10 giving the game as an "impressive" and said that the game is the best kart-racer on the Xbox and PS3. 1up gave the game a B+. And Game Informer gave the game 7.75 out of 10. Gamespot also gave it 8.0 out of 10, praising its responsive controls and excellent track design. Kotaku called it a competent racer which evokes fond memories, although laments that the tracks and music selection don't delve as deep into Sega lore as the character roster. GameTrailers gave the game 8.0 as well, praising its track design and addictive gameplay.
Gamespot gave it a 8.0 out of 10, saying that "Smooth controls and a bunch of awesome tracks make this an exciting kart racer." They also called the decision of putting Amy and Big in the game "scraping the bottom of the barrel when looking for characters to be in the game". Metacritic gave the Wii version a 78 out of 100.
- The theme for Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing is "So Much More..." and is on the So Much More Bentley Jones album.
- The game also has released posters and stickers in the UK.
- Jazwares released toys in honor of this game. The toys available are Sonic, Knuckles, Amy, Shadow, Tails, Dr. Eggman, Aiai, Amigo, and Beat.
- The Wii version of the game also features its own WiiWheel, with "Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing" typed above the Wii Remote, and the SEGA logo typed below.
- The European PlayStation 3 owners got somewhat similar bundle that includes both the game and DualShock 3 wheel-attachment manufactured by 4gamers.
- NKOK produced a line of RC racers, they released Sonic and Knuckles, NKOK also released a "Sonic vs. Knuckles" Mini RC track set.
- Gamerz Skinz released skins for all 4 DS models. They featured the group picture in front of a Seaside Hill background.
These are the achievements on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions of Sonic & Sega All Stars Racing and most of them apply to the PC version as well. These achievements are also available in the Wii version (under the name "Challenges"), but the challenges that require Nintendo WFC are no longer achievable due to the discontinuation of the service.
NOTE: For Android and iOS devices (either through Google Play Games Servies on Android or Game Center on iOS), not all achievements shown below can be achieved in those mobile versions.
- At loading screens, Sonic appears with a "Sonic Says" hint. This is a reference to the American Sonic cartoon, Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog.
- Banjo & Kazooie are playable in the 360 version, making it their first appearance in any Sonic or Sega game.
- It also marks their final non-cameo appearance in a video game until their confirmation for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate nine years later.
- The playable characters in Sega Superstars Tennis that do not make playable appearances in this game are NiGHTS, Reala, Gum, Pudding, Gilius Thunderhead, and MeeMee. However, they appear in the next racing game, Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed.
- This marks Billy Hatcher's first appearance on the Xbox 360, DS, and PS3 and his second appearance on the Wii and PC.
- This is Big the Cat's first playable appearance on a seventh generation game that is not DS exclusive.
- This is also Big's second playable appearance in a spin-off game after Sonic Shuffle.
- NiGHTS did not appear as a playable character but instead took the role as the referee who flies and swings the checkered flag to start the race.
- Although the ChuChus originated from ChuChu Rocket!, this is the first actual appearance of Chuih, ChuPea, ChuBei, & ChuBach. This is because they were only mentioned in that game's instruction manual and never physically appeared in the game itself (even though they piloted the rockets of their corresponding colors).
- Avatars (Xbox 360) and Miis (Wii) have set icons no matter what Avatar/Mii is being used. The icon for Avatars is a dark gray male Avatar silhouette, while the icon for Miis is a default Mii (seen when the player makes a new Mii on the Mii Channel before they customize it, only here it has a smile).
- Metal Sonic's bio is the only bio that does not mention his vehicle.
- The picture of Metal Sonic in his bio is his decal from Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games.
- Aside for E-102 Gamma, all of the playable characters from Sonic Adventure DX: Director's Cut (Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Amy, Big and Metal Sonic) are present in Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing as playable characters.
- Nearly all of the voice clips for the Sonic the Hedgehog characters are from Sonic the Hedgehog (2006).
- Big the Cat is the only Sonic character to have new voice clips rather than having recycled voices clips from the game as he was absent. Additionally, the only other time his voice actor at the time of this game, Oliver Wyman, voiced him was in Sonic X. Due to this, new voice clips were recorded for him for a racing environment.
All-Star Moves
- Billy Hatcher's All-Star Move has him running on a giant egg (the one containing the Water Comb). However, in Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg he can only do this if he is wearing the circus hat (which, interestingly, looks exactly like NiGHTS' hat).
- Knuckles' All-Star Move is the most powerful of them all. This is because if the player holds the required button long enough, his fist will turn bright red and vibrate in a fast motion. If the player lets go at that point, it will cause a type of earthquake that knocks over every opponent.
- The ChuChus' All-Star move is similar to the Ultimate Pac-Mobile in Pac-Man World Rally.
- In the instruction manual for the DS version, Zobiko, Akira, ChuPea, ChuBei, ChuBach, and Robo make appearances (on the same page as their console partners) despite never appearing in this version.
- Robo is briefly playable during Mobo's All-Star Move, while in the console versions, Mobo would be on the blimp.
- In the DS version, Opa-Opa's all-star move only has shooting missiles. In the console versions, there are three options or the Parts Shop mini-menu.
- When Tails jumps off of a ramp, cliff, or he goes off the course and lands the Tornado Racer has a slight recoil. The front of the plane tilts upward from the speed boost from landing and until it rebalances itself it will be unable to make another air trick if it goes off the course again.
- Shadow's bike, the Dark Rider, is the same bike he used in Sonic the Hedgehog (2006) but with the Black Arms' symbol on the sides.
- The characters with returning cars/bikes/aircrafts are Shadow, Jacky & Akira, B.D. Joe, Alex Kidd (normal & All-Star), Ryo (normal & All-Star/DLC), the Bonanza Bros. (All-Star), and Opa-Opa.
- Though they appear to be a part of the class, Metal Sonic and Knuckles' karts are not classified as bikes, but have bike-like stats.
- Jacky's Red Lightning references Outrun because, despite being a muscle car, it strongly resembles the series' flagship car, the Ferrari Testarossa.
- While drifting with Amy's car in the DS version, it shows that the car has 2 exhausts. In the console versions of the game, it shows a single exhaust.
- The game used to be called "SEGA Superstars Racer".[29]
- Ever since the game was announced, fans were complaining and constantly asking, "Why is Sonic in a car?" Executive producer, Steve Lycett, answered the question, and said that they originally tried making the game with Sonic and friends racing on foot instead. Size and proportion issues occurred however, and drifting was deemed impossible for characters outside of vehicles. After several attempts at tweaking the engine, it was decided that all characters should have a vehicle for easier play.[9]
- There was a joke about this in the Off Panel comic of Sonic Universe #45, where Sonic, on foot, wins the race in a millisecond.
- This is the final game to ever feature voice actors from 4Kids Entertainment. From then on, they were all replaced with voice actors from Studiopolis and Funimation, excluding Mike Pollock.
- As such, this is the final game to feature Jason Griffith as Sonic and Shadow, Amy Palant as Tails, Lisa Ortiz as Amy Rose, and Dan Green as Knuckles. Oliver Wyman would later reprise his role as Big the Cat in the Sonic the Hedgehog Level Pack for LEGO Dimensions.
- This is the first SEGA Superstars game to not be for the PlayStation 2.
- An interview with Omar Woodley states that the game was previously going to have 50 characters, but for some reason the idea was scrapped.
- Sonic and Billy Hatcher make the same exact pose, only mirrored, in their character artwork. Also, Jacky & Akira's artwork is taken directly from Virtua Fighter 5.
- The artwork for Chuih, ChuPea, ChuBei, & ChuBach in this game is very similar to their artwork for ChuChu Rocket!. The only differences being that Chuih & ChuBei's tails are not seen (most likely due to the fact that they are looking straight ahead) and ChuPea & ChuBach are slightly turned to the side (ChuPea faces left, ChuBach faces right).
- Japanese Sega Saturn mascot Segata Sanshiro was originally considered to be a playable character in this game.
- An arcade edition of Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing, ported by Sega Amusements, exists in random arcades. It was seen at a Skokie, Illinois Chuck E. Cheese's restaurant. It was believed to be there temporarily as part of a location test, but is now available through the Sega Amusements website. One was also located in the UK in Bournemouth, inside the former SegaWorld location there. it has since been removed.
- Mario was planned to be in the Wii version of this game but taken out after agreeing to only have crossovers for the Mario & Sonic series.[30]
- On the iOS version, Knuckles, Shadow and Ulala were not characters until an update.
- The same thing happened to Sun Fair.
- Another update had Ocean Ruin, Bingo Party, and Monkey Target to be playable stages.
- The instruction manual for the Xbox 360 and PS3 version mentions an achievement called "Wheelie Good (perform a six second wheelie)". Not only does this achievement not exist in the actual game, but it is impossible to perform it. This is because they used the same chart as the DS Instruction Booklet has in it.
- The Achievements/Trophies/Challenges on the 360, PS3 and Wii versions are mostly references to other Sega games; like Sonic Triple Trouble ("perform 3 tricks in one jump and make the landing"), Altered Beast ("win a race using an All-Star item"), and Sonic Classic Collection (play with each racer). It even makes references to other things involving Sega; one is "To be this good takes AGES!" (one of the early SEGA mottos) and "Mega Driver".
- AGES is actually SEGA spelled backwards.
- The black teeth that is part of the orthographic interface and goes to an effect is hidden during the gameplay because the original aspect ratio is 16:9. That can only be exposed if the PC version is running on narrow aspect ratios including 4:3.
- The E3 Demo of the Xbox 360 version has differences from the final such as the map of the course being shown on the lower right of the HUD and the All-Star Move being accessible while not being last.
- This game contains the drifting sound effect from Pac-Man World Rally, another racing game.
- Similar to NASCAR games, instead of a map of the track, the game has a scrolling bar at the top of the screen that shows each racer's position.
- On the Xbox 360 box artwork of the game, instead of Tails flying to the left of Sonic, Banjo and Kazooie are racing by in the same area Tails was.
- The (Java) mobile version of the game features a unique gameplay mechanic in which there are Rings the player can collect to fill up meter that allows the player to boost.
- None of the voice actors' names are given in the credits, not even new voices like the announcer.
- In the introduction in the DS version, Akira is seen with Jacky Bryant in their car. However, Akira does not actually appear in that version of the game.
- The PS3, iOS, PC, and DS versions of this game are the only versions without exclusive characters.
- Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing ported over to the Mac/iOS and have online multiplayer through the Game Center. However, The PC Version does not have online multiplayer.
- There is a glitch on the iPhone/iPad version of Shibuya Downtown course. If the character goes on one of the dash pads, occasionally the speed boost will not be given.
- All of the Sonic-related tracks except for the Egg Hangar are from Sonic Heroes.
- In the console version, after racing on a Final Fortress Track and going back to the menus, a screen appears on the left side which oddly enough shows Amy and what appears to be information regarding her.
- This is the only Sonic game which supports the Xbox 360 Wireless Racing Wheel accessory.
- The instruction manual for Sonic Generations contains an ad for this game. However it says that it is rated E10+ while the actual game is rated E. This likely due to the Jet Set Radio songs included.
- Silver is the only hedgehog in the mainstream Sonic games that did not appear in this game, as Sonic, Shadow, and Amy did.
- On both this game and even its sequel, Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed, the background of the cover is Seaside Hill.
- On the Billy Hatcher track, Lava Lair, there is an announcer typo. The track takes place in Dino Mountain, but the announcer says Blizzard Castle. This error also happens in the Billy Hatcher Grand prix, as it is called Blizzard Cup.
- In Multiplayer mode, there is a glitch where only P1 can control Opa-Opa's part Shop, even if other players are using it.
- Some of the DS version's tracks have different designs/layouts than the console versions.
- The DS version mission "His Name is Ryo" is a bike race as all characters who ride bikes or similar vehicles are set to always appear.
- The iOS/Android versions are actually downgraded from the DS version containing less characters and use the same HUD as the Console/PC versions.
- In the iOS/Android version, Jacky and Akira do not appear in the game despite being in the intro.
At the 2012 Toy Fair in New York, Sega revealed a new toy line based on the game and confirmed to Kotaku that a sequel is in production, to be revealed later that same year. The game appeared for preorder online for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. And later, Nintendo Wii U, Nintendo 3DS, and PlayStation Vita versions were hinted at. The confirmed title for the sequel was revealed to be Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed which was released in late 2012 on November 16.
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 http://www.sega.com/games/sonicracing/
- ↑ Feral Interactive news - Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing out now for Mac
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 http://www.originalsoundversion.com/?p=5693
- ↑ http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=215942
- ↑ http://www.tssznews.com/2009/11/25/inside-sega-frances-asr-powwow/#more-9270
- ↑ http://forums.sega.com/showpost.php?p=5465308&postcount=67
- ↑ Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing Video Game, E3 09: Developer Walkthrough HD. GameTrailers.com (2009-06-03). Retrieved on 2009-08-21.
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
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- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 http://blogs.sega.com/usa/2009/11/12/sonic-sega-all-stars-racing-dev-diary-concept/
- ↑ http://www.seganerds.com/2009/10/06/toejam-earl-were-planned-for-sonic-sega-all-stars-racing/
- ↑ http://www.gonintendo.com/viewstory.php?id=99528
- ↑ http://kotaku.com/5375494/there-will-be-no-toe-jam--earl-in-your-sega-all+stars-games
- ↑ http://forums.sega.com/showpost.php?p=5290608&postcount=50
- ↑ http://www.gonintendo.com/viewstory.php?id=99588
- ↑ http://kotaku.com/5401043/catching-up-with-toejam--earl
- ↑ http://forums.sega.com/showpost.php?p=5360575&postcount=306
- ↑ http://www.gamereactor.eu/previews/2095/Sonic+&+Sega+All-Stars+Racing/
- ↑ http://www.tssznews.com/2009/12/02/segata-sanshiro-considered-for-asr-but-unlikely/
- ↑ http://seganerds.thekartel.com/blog/2010/02/22/exclusive_qa_with_sonic_and_sega_all-star_racings_producers
- ↑ http://forums.sega.com/showthread.php?p=5338915
- ↑ http://rianald.deviantart.com/journal/30845710/
- ↑ http://www.sonicstadium.org/news/sonic-undergrounds-sonia-in-asr-wii-pc
- ↑ http://sonicstadium.org/news/playrs-asr-video-preview-more-dlc-characters-tracks-confirmation
- ↑ http://sonicstadium.org/news/steve-lycett-we-didnt-forget-nights
- ↑ PS3 ASR DLC: Metal Sonic, Death Egg Zone and Ryo-F (Update 7: DLC Removed) - The Sonic Stadium
- ↑ Sega America Blog | Metal Sonic DLC for Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing
- ↑ http://www.sonicstadium.org/news/asr-dlc-ball-in-segas-court-now
- ↑ Mario, Sonic, and Profits in Sega's fiscal 2010 | Joystiq
- ↑ http://www.samneale.co.uk/SamNeale_Products.html
- ↑ Exclusive Q&A with Sonic and Sega All-Star Racing's producers (February 22, 2010). Archived from the original on 2016-17-06.


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UK-Style Map Styles & Symbols Included with Ortelius
The Ortelius collection includes over 100 map styles and symbols based on thoughtfully designed Ordnance Survey (OS) maps.
To edit built-in styles, Clone a style and customize it to suit your project. Built-in symbols can provide a quick starting point for creating custom symbol collections. Note, some symbols are made from multiple objects and should be detached from their symbol master, then ungrouped before editing.
These are just some of the styles & clip art among a wide assortment of over 1700 fully editable vector map symbols and custom styles included in the built-in Ortelius Library.
To Get This Collection
This collection is included with the Ortelius software for Mac OS X. Don't have Ortelius? Try it free!
Terms of Use
Media provided by Mapdiva LLC are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License unless otherwise noted. Attribution to Mapdiva.com is requested, however not required.


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News Archives - 2011
Two Auggies on the Mercury MESSENGER team
Last week, just past midnight after St. Patrick's Day, NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft successfully slipped into an orbit around Mercury, the innermost planet. This was a difficult maneuver against the pull of the sun, and the groups of science teams around the country who have worked on the Mercury MESSENGER project for seven years were elated, to say the least.
Among these scientists are two Augsburg physics graduates -- Brian Anderson '82 and George Ho '91. Both work at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (JHUAPL), which serves as the manager of the Mercury MESSENGER project for NASA.
Anderson is on the mission's core team; he is a deputy project scientist and oversees the orbital operations planning to ensure that observations from all of the instruments are coordinated to meet the mission objectives. He is also a MESSENGER co-investigator for the work of the Magnetometer, one of seven scientific instruments on the spacecraft. This will measure the strength and variations of Mercury's magnetic field, constantly collecting field samples.
Ho is an instrument scientist for another of the spacecraft's instruments, the Energetic Particle and Plasma Spectrometer (EPPS), which measures the mix and characteristics of the charged particles in the planet's magnetic field.
The goal of MESSENGER (MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and Ranging) is to better understand Mercury, the planet with the oldest surface. It has been more than 30 years since data was sent from the Mariner spacecraft as it journeyed past Mercury but never orbited around it.
MESSENGER's successful entry into orbit was reached after a journey of 4.9 billion miles. The spacecraft was launched on August 3, 2004, and followed a path to Mercury that included a flyby of Earth, two flybys of Venus, and three of Mercury before inserting itself into orbit last week. MESSENGER will remain in orbit one Earth year sending back data before returning. Its instruments were started up and testing began on March 24, with data transmittal set to begin on April 4.
To read about Brian Anderson, go to http://messenger.jhuapl.edu/who_we_are/member_focus_08182008.html.
For explanations of the orbit entry process, go to http://messenger.jhuapl.edu/orbit_insertion/stationkeeping.htm. To learn about the Mercury MESSENGER mission, go to http://messenger.jhuapl.edu/.